Finance

New Study Says Few Companies Sustain Improvements in Inventory

Thursday, August 16, 2012 · Patrick Burnson The ability of the largest U.S. companies to collect from customers and manage inventory improved just slightly in 2011, while payables performance worsened, according to the 14th annual working capital survey from REL Consulting, a division of The Hackett Group, Inc. and CFO…

Are You Planning to Sell Products in China?

Wednesday, August 1, 2012 · Rosemary Coates The tender law is not very popular in China because it does not allow private buyers to exercise their own preferences when purchasing. It is also not popular with sellers whose bids and pricing are made public for all to see

New Study Says Gap in Process Performance Affects Competitiveness

Wednesday, May 30, 2012 · Patrick Burnson A study released today by Genpact Limited, has found that many companies must close a performance gap in their business processes to boost competitiveness

S&OP: What You Can Learn from the Top Performers

Monday, May 7, 2012 · Len Prokopets The benefits of effective Sales & Operations Planning are compelling — lower operating costs, reduced inventory requirements, and top-line growth. The top-performing S&OP companies are realizing these benefits and in the process gaining competitive advantage. This…

Capital Equipment Sourcing and Procurement

Thursday, January 26, 2012 · SCMR Staff CAPS Research releases a SnapShots benchmarking report on Capital Equipment Sourcing and Procurement

New Working Capital Performance Study Launched by REL Consulting

Tuesday, January 24, 2012 · SCMR Staff Complimentary Study Analyzes the Results Companies Achieved in 2011, Strategies and Challenges, and Objectives for 2012

Showing Value (Part IV)

Monday, January 23, 2012 · Robert A Rudzki One of the important design choices in building a credible cost reduction tracking system is what should we measure our cost reductions against. There are some basic choices.

Risk Management Becoming More Complex

Wednesday, January 18, 2012 · Patrick Burnson The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010 went into effect just 18 days ago, and industry analysts say that the state is leading the way toward nation-wide adaptation.

Showing Value (Part III)

Wednesday, January 18, 2012 · Robert A Rudzki The importance of relevance to the P and L Statement cannot be overstated.

U.S. Treasury Joins Ranks of European Governments in Embracing e-Invoicing

Monday, December 5, 2011 · Bob Cohen, Vice President, North America, Basware The federal government has made a firm commitment to e-invoicing, joining a growing number of countries promoting the use of this technology in the public sector

Always Have an Exit Strategy

Monday, November 14, 2011 · Robert A Rudzki Don’t get locked into a provider and its technology in such a manner that the “exit costs” make it difficult to change directions when the time comes to do so.

More evidence that “on-shoring” may gain currency

Tuesday, November 8, 2011 · Patrick Burnson When higher U.S. productivity, the actual labor content of a product, shipping, and other factors are taken into account, the cost advantage of making many goods in China that are bound for sale in the U.S. will be marginal.

“Paycheck cycle economics” impacts the supply chain

Monday, November 7, 2011 · Patrick Burnson The Trade Balance report due out Thursday should show the trade deficit widening in September, and the Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index issued the following day should edge up in early November

Supply chain professionals get economic update this week

Monday, October 24, 2011 · Patrick Burnson The two most important measures of consumer confidence, the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index and Reuters/University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index will show confidence and sentiment at recessionary levels in October

Supply Chain financial settlement may be enhanced with new Ariba acquisition

Thursday, October 20, 2011 · Patrick Burnson In a move to expand its global footprint, Ariba, Inc. announced that it has closed the acquisition of b-process, a privately-held provider of France’s largest electronic invoice network and one of the largest e-invoicing networks in Europe.